You’re still not sure if you’re going. If budget is tight, I believe IAPP has a template you could use to make a case for your participation in #GPS19 [Laughs]. Seriously, IAPP thinks about everything – I’m sure they can still help if there’s no template for this. Just inquire. Other than great food, here are some of the goodies you’ll miss if you don’t show up:

Feeling the love of more than 3,500 GDPR survivors coming together to tell their stories so we’ll all keep working smarter to preserve the privacy rights and freedoms of individuals and consumers. No, don’t miss that.

It’s not just the largest annual gathering of privacy professionals but we’ll mark the anniversary of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). After a couple of years of trying to figure out GDPR plus one year since its enforcement? For all organizations and privacy pros, that’s a biggie. It’s an accomplishment. GPS is a work party. I call it a “brain” party. You’ll learn so much from speakers and other pros. Networking will become your thing if it isn’t already. Someone needs to find another name for it than networking.

You’ll hear from top notch privacy professionals, practitioners, technologists, lawyers, advisors, writers, regulators, faculty, you name it. During travels to Europe I’ve heard some of the ladies (in the keynote panel) speak before, if you haven’t don’t miss this. Data Protection Commissioner of the UK. Data Protection Commissioner of Ireland, and the European Data Protection Board Chairwoman will be there to share some of the work they’re doing to support privacy professionals, organizations, and data subjects. I love their work and transparency about the realities of data protection, compliance, and enforcement. Look for these names:

Another thing you’ll miss is the hands-on Active Learning workshop where you’ll be focused on tackling a particular privacy concern in a small group setting – no need to get up and run to another session in 45 minutes. This goes deep for an entire day. No kidding. It’s active learning. Hands on.

With everyone around the globe in house, can you imagine all the special interests gatherings you’d get to choose from? Business-to-Business, job-seekers, head-hunters, contractors, internship-seekers, women in tech, etc. Oh, less I forget, there’re separate “Section Forums” for lawyers, engineers, and more. Find birds that have the same privacy feathers as you and flock together as you wish.

You’ll have fun, learn and eat well. Reunite with old privacy buddies and meet new ones.

Explore DC’s culture. By the way, it’s a great place for privacy pros to live and work. I’m loving it – metro train, food, music, art, work, and more.